I love goblins almost as much as I love grippli. This
week’s goblin is another non-evil one, for some reason the random rolls seem to
love them. The stats left the character open to a number of options and with
the high wisdom and the parents in a clergy it almost screamed wisdom-based
caster. Being from a metropolis in the Mana Wastes left only the city of
Alkenstar as the place of origin. Having a high dexterity means a ranged
character, and the high wisdom means a decent grit pool. And so I went with the
gunslinger, specifically the
gun scavenger archetype.
Gribble
Although goblins are far more common in Avistan they’re
not unheard of on the continent of Garund. In the Mana Wastes along with
mutants, giants, and other monsters roam a handful of small goblin tribes.
These goblins tend not to be as fecund as their Avistani kin and their tribes,
and therefore their tribes are smaller.
These tribes tend to be scavengers, not just of items and
technology but of language, culture, and religion. Some goblins follow in the
protective nature of the calikangs while worshiping the gods of the giants or
chittering away in the indistinct language of the sand krakens. A tribe that
revels in the chaotic nature of magic can be found warring with a group of
goblins that piece together the black powder technologies of Alkenstar.
Gribble was born to a family that was considered heretics
even among the goblins. His parents were part of a cult that worshipped a storm
giant god. These goblins began their worship by learning about Aegirran from a
book—another taboo among the goblins—because there are no storm giants that
call the Mana Wastes home.
His parents and other members of the sect were forcibly
run out of goblin society. Some died in the purge. This number almost included
Gribble who sustained a critical wound from a gunshot by one of the more tech
based goblin tribes.
Although the sect was dispersed, Gribble’s father still worshiped in Aegirran’s name after moving into Alkenstar. The deity was so
impressed with his father’s dedication that he became the first and only goblin
cleric of Aegirran, and he was granted the ability to heal, which is what saved
his son from death.
In Alkenstar Gribble’s parents set up a church to
Aegirran in a ramshackle building that also doubled as their home. The goblins
were considered an odd bunch; worshipping a deity of another race, who had
domain over sailors in a landlocked nation. But they did good deeds and helped
support the community, even taking in a young orphan Halfling that Gribble grew
to know as his brother.
His closest confidant through growing up in Alkenstar was
his brother. Although others thought it was weird Gribble could never think of
him as anything less than true family. The duo was inseparable. His brother had
lived on the streets for quite a few years before Gribble and his family took
him in. The young Halfling was invaluable for learning about the other races
and how best to live alongside them, as well as the ins and outs of the
metropolis itself.
Since his brush with death, Gribble had fostered an
interest in guns. Many goblins would have been scared of the thing that almost
killed them, but not Gribble. He showed an intense curiosity for all things
black powder, although being poor he could never afford anything as lavish as
even a pistol. This interest led him to take up work as an assistant to an
investor. Although his gizmos were far from guns they did employ gears,
springs, and other moving parts.
Gribble made a deal with the inventor to keep his
mechanical secrets but as time went on the goblin began to produce more and
more of the man’s actual work. He saw the things he created get sold and money
and accolades go to the inventor. In a fit of jealousy he told one client that
the doodad he was buying was actually his invention, and told him how it
worked, but the man wouldn’t believe a goblin. Gribble left his position and
felt bad for breaking a promise, but the experience made him realize how hard
it was to not be socially acceptable just because of his race.
The young goblin wanted to make a name for himself, he
wanted people to know goblins could be helpful and kind. He wanted people to
know goblins weren’t all dumb. He just didn’t convey these things well. He
wanted to build a reputation, and his brother said he would help him, and so
the two spent their time going around Smokeside trying to become heroes.
Helping kittens out of trees and old ladies across streets was no way to do
this, although it did net the two tramps access to some pretty interesting
salvage.
Gribble took everything he learned from the inventor and
his own studies and used the spare parts they found or were gifted to make his
own gun. They also took payment in some flamboyant clothes, stuff two young
boys thought befit a dashing hero. Gribble swore to make a name for himself as
a great gunslinger, and his brother would sing his praises as his own personal
storyteller.
The two wander the streets of Alkenstar but who knows if
that’s where the adventure ends.
So how did you build your goblin? What class did you
choose? Who was his Halfling brother? Why were his parents in a cult? How did
is near demise come about?
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